Entering a year of high expectations, the swim team had to recommit to themselves to reach their full potential.
Since seventh grade, Brian Wukitch ’26 has had his eye on one particular banner hanging in the gym: the swimming state championship banner with only one title on it – Charlie Nascimben’s ’20 win in the 100-yard breaststroke at the 2020 MIAA Division 1 State Championship Meet. Like his teammates Jordan Kinch ’26 and Olle Lundgren ’25, he had a goal to add his name to the banner.
But before that could even happen, there were decisions to be made. The team’s successful 2023–24 campaign included multiple individual Catholic Conference Championship titles, Kinch winning Conference MVP, and a handful of third, fourth, and sixth place finishes at the state meet. While the team had their sights set on a revenge campaign to take first in the events they should have won, their success attracted outside interest from clubs seeking their participation.
In the months leading up to the season, Kinch, Lundgren, and Wukitch received offers to swim full-time for club programs, and a decision needed to be made. Club or school? As fall went into winter, all three were hesitant to decide. While their club teams would provide opportunities to swim against elite talent, Catholic Memorial and everything the school community had done for them could not be overlooked.
“I know how important this team has been for them, and they know that we’re not only competing for ourselves but for the guys around us and the Knights before us,” says head coach Pat Murray. “That’s why my pitch was to come back, be a part of a great program, be a part of your school community, push each other in the pool, and create a dominant team.”
The days leading up to the start of the season were filled with uncertainty. One day, everyone was coming back, and the next, no one knew what they were doing. In addition to Murray’s pitch, Chris Helm ’25, described by teammates as the “Glue Guy” of the team, implored his teammates to return. As he said, it took a lot of convincing and a lot of meetings, but what stuck with his teammates was the feeling that while they did place high at states, the lack of a win made it feel like an underperformance.
By November, a decision was made. Effective January 1, the three would wear silver and red swim caps and prioritize CM over their club teams for the duration of the high school swim season. The community they built by being members of the swimming team meant too much to compete exclusively for a club, and they accomplished too much not to finish the job and attempt to win a state title.
There were two main reasons for coming back. First, I love my swim team. I consider everyone on this team my brother,” says Wukitch. “But what really motivated us was getting our names on the banner. I want to leave a legacy here and knowing that we could possibly win a state championship and forever leave our mark on CM. That’s why I came back.”
With everyone committed and a goal in sight, they locked in. Following a close defeat to Boston Latin Academy in December, the team went 7–1 the rest of the way and finished in second place in the Catholic Conference. At the conference meet, Kinch repeated as MVP, and the four combined to win three individual championships and two relays.
At the state championship meet, the decision to return was on the verge of paying off. In the 200 medley relay, the team took the championship and set a new school record with a time of 1:38.87. While Kinch, Lundgren, and Wukitch kept the team close, it was the anchor leg that pulled them towards their goal of standing at the top of the podium. Kevin Garvey ’27, who swam the 50 freestyle part of the race, advanced the team into first without taking a moment to lift his head for air.
“I thought we were losing, I’m not going to lie. I didn’t think I had it in me to pull through, but I kept my head down and gave the best swim I’ve ever had,” says Garvey.
With the win, the goal was complete. The banner with only one lonely name attached to it will receive four more to celebrate the first relay championship in school history. And it would have been easy to walk away and give in to the temptation of swimming outside of school full-time. However, there was too much to lose. With their names soon to be added to the banner, the four left their mark, aware that there may be a seventh grader out there who will look at their names the way Wukitch once looked at Nascimben’s all those years ago.